Chapter 6
Claire finally limped out of the bridal shop under the curious gazes of strangers. James never came back.
It took a whole week for her ankle to finally stop swelling, but even then, walking too much still made it ache.
During those miserable days, she worked at the office by day and burned the midnight oil at the hotel, hammering out proposals.
To prove herself, Claire refused to rely on her parents or accept any help from James. She built her own tech company from the ground up, slowly making a name for herself. Now, she was finally invited to attend the industry summit.
She'd been holding onto the good news, wanting to surprise James like a kid saving up a secret for someone special. But now, there was no reason to share it with him anymore.
To prep for her speech at the industry summit, Claire flipped her days and nights, working nonstop. And through it all, James never bothered to check in, not even once.
The only text he sent was blunt and cold: [This is for the wedding dress. Lily doesn't owe you anything now. I'm handling things for her, so don't try to mess with her again.]
Right after, her phone chimed with a bank alert: 300,000 dollars had just landed in her account.
James had betrayed love, Lily had betrayed friendship, and somehow, it was all on Claire now.
Claire couldn't stand the humiliation anymore. She called James right back and just let it ring forever before he finally bothered to pick up.
Claire didn't hold back. "I don't want your filthy money. Take your cash and Lily, and both of you get out of my life for good."
There was nothing but silence on the other end, except for the sound of waves crashing in the background.
So James, who had always been "too busy with work," was suddenly relaxing at the beach?
Before she could even wrap her head around it, Lily's soft voice came through the phone. "Claire, James just went swimming.
"He paid you back for me, but I swear I'll pay him back later. He only helped because I was in a tough spot, so please, don't misunderstand him, okay?"
Claire stared at her phone in disbelief. James used to guard his phone like a hawk, but now he'd actually handed it over to Lily and even given her the password, letting her pick up his calls like it was nothing.
Claire couldn't care less about whatever they had going on. She just wanted to settle the money matter with James. Her voice was icy. "Put James on the phone."
Lily's voice suddenly shifted, sounding panicked, like she was terrified of something. "Claire, I'm so sorry, it's all my fault! Please don't blame James anymore.
"He only brought me here because you hurt me. No, wait, it's because I got hurt myself, and he's just helping me recover. Once I'm better, he'll come right back to you, I promise."
Claire had no clue what kind of stunt Lily was pulling now, and she didn't want to waste another second on her. Just as she was about to hang up, James's voice cut in. "Lily, you don't need to apologize to her.
"She's the one who messed up. You've always given in to her, and now she thinks she's above the rules. She needs to learn a lesson. If she keeps acting out, maybe I'll just get myself a new bride."
Lily's voice was soft and pleading. "Please, don't fight because of me."
Claire felt more disgusted the longer she listened to their little duet.
She yelled into the phone, "If you want to marry her, be my guest! Don't bother replacing your bride. I'll just replace my groom. I'm marrying someone else next month, so make sure you show up!!"
But before she could finish, the call was abruptly cut off. Claire tried to call back, but the line was dead.
After that, Claire never saw Lily or James again.
She only heard about them through friends.
Today, her friend Emma sent her a picture of James and Lily walking on the beach together and asked, "Hey, is everything okay with you two? You're getting married soon, so why is James off vacationing with Lily?"
Claire looked at the photo, feeling a wave of bitter irony. She used to dream about going on a beach vacation with James, but he always said he was too busy with work.
Now, even though the industry summit was coming up, he had all the time in the world to relax with Lily.
She asked Emma, "Where did you get this photo?"
Emma replied, "James posted it on his feed."
Claire quickly pulled up James's feed, only to realize she'd been blocked.
A few days later, Emma sent another photo. This time, they'd moved on to the grasslands. In the picture, James was holding Lily close as they rode a white horse together, her cheeks flushed.
They'd traveled across the country, all just to make Lily smile.
Emma sounded anxious. "You need to go after James! Lily's clearly gunning for your spot!"
Claire clutched her chest; the pain wasn't as sharp as before. "Why bother? Anyway, I'm done with him."